Brainfreeze
by deepfathom
Summary: Even the bravest of dragon-riding Vikings can be prone to memory lapses.
1. Part 1

**Part 1**

This just wasn't fair. Not after the night he'd had, full of fiery visions and strange pains in a limb no longer attached to him.

Tired and aching, Hiccup stood at the top of his front steps, shivering and unable to move. Wrapping his arms around himself, he took a sweeping glance across a village transformed by drift upon drift of heavy white. Today was the first time in two days that Berk and its residents had seen the sun after a vicious winter storm. The air was clean, clear, and bitingly cold and what wasn't blanketed in snow was petrified under a thick layer of ice.

_Perfect_, Hiccup thought bitterly. _Just when I was starting to get the hang of this peg-leg thing._

Several months had passed since the encounter with the Red Death and, naturally, waking up to find he was minus body part had come as a terrible shock. Learning to walk again was only one of the many challenges he faced in recovery, but with practice, the support of his friends, his father, and especially Toothless, he'd been progressing well enough.

…Until now.

Now the gods had to haul off and complicate things. Again.

At that, a heavy sigh escaped his lips in a steamy puff and he rolled his eyes, wondering if he was forever doomed to be the punchline of some cosmic joke—

The deep, throaty greeting-growl of a dragon pushed into his thoughts, providing a welcome distraction. Hiccup's mood brightened a little as Toothless slid to a stop at the foot of the steps.

"Hey bud! Where've you been all morning?"

Toothless's only response was a grin and a shake of his head before he turned a circle and sat back expectantly. The green orb-like eyes blinked once, twice, and Hiccup knew the time had come to leave the safety of the front porch like a fledgling from the nest. There were important things to attend to, like perfecting aerial feats and catching fish, for example, that couldn't be put off any longer.

"Alright, alright, I'm coming," Hiccup mumbled, shuffling forward to the edge of the porch. It was just a few steps, but today, when encased in a solid sheet of ice, it looked more like the pathway to certain death. Nevertheless, he steadied himself on his real foot and carefully placed the metal one down on the first stair.

_So far, so good_, he thought, releasing his breath after a few tense seconds.

The dragon burbled his approval, giving Hiccup just enough confidence to continue. But the moment he shifted all his weight onto the peg-leg was the very moment the rest of his day started going downhill.

"Oh no! Oh no—EEEYAH!" The metal was no match for the slick coating on the steps, and before he knew it, his legs went out from under him and he found himself on a quick and painful journey all the way to the bottom of the steps.

After a stunned moment or two flat on his back, Hiccup got around to wondering why Toothless hadn't caught him like he usually did whenever he took a spill. His answer came when Toothless's botched attempt at a rescue came to an abrupt and not-so-graceful end right on top of him.

The young Viking huffed as all the air in his lungs was forced out by the Night Fury's weight, noting that apparently dragons had trouble with ice as well. Toothless's claws scraped and gouged the frozen ground as he scrambled to find his footing and picked himself up.

Hiccup grunted as the pressure on his chest lifted. "Uuuggh! Man, am I ever glad you're not a Gronckle."

Toothless smacked his lips and rumbled an apology before offering a bent head to help the boy sit upright.

"Thanks." Hiccup brushed off some snow crystals before rubbing the growing lump on the back of his head.

As a Viking living on the almost-always-frozen island of Berk, Hiccup was no stranger to getting around on ice. However, things were different now and it looked as if he and Toothless might have more urgent matters to take care of today than soaring through the clouds. After all, if the two of them could barely stand, how would they take off or land? Hiccup didn't want to think about it.

"Uh, you're gonna hate me, but…maaaaybe we should skip the flying for today, huh?"

Toothless groaned in reply, flopping over sideways in a melodramatic display of disappointment. Hiccup shared the sentiment. Sharing space in a stuffy house for a couple days with an agitated dragon (not to mention his agitated father) had nearly driven him mad. He'd been eagerly awaiting freedom and, seeing that the skies had cleared, took the first available opportunity to escape.

"I know, I know, I want to go too, but this is only the first ice storm of winter. I can't spend the next nine or ten months biffing it off the front porch every day…" he trailed off with a glance at his prosthetic. "I…I'm kinda stuck with this thing and I've gotta learn how to use it." He reached for the now upright dragon, scratching him under the chin. "So whaddaya say, bud? Think you can help me out?"

Toothless leaned forward to give Hiccup a gentle bump with his nose, uttering a low, sympathetic rumble. He understood perfectly.

….

"So, what is it?" Snotlout asked.

All but two of the teens of Berk were gathered in a clearing below a steep hill, squinting at something in Ruffnut's outstretched palm.

"Looks like a bunch of socks frozen together in some sort of disc shape," Tuffnut responded, leaning in for a closer look with a hand on his chin.

Ruffnut rolled her eyes. "That's because it _is_ a bunch of socks frozen together in a disc shape. We left'em outside before the storm hit to see if we could catch some trolls, remember?"

"Oh." Tuffnut scratched his head. "Oh yeah, I knew that. Huh, I was wondering why I couldn't find any socks for two days."

"And they froze completely solid like that?" continued Fishlegs.

Ruffnut nodded. "Yup. Found'em this morning right where we left them. Cool, huh?"

"Ha, 'cool' is right," Snotlout snorted, taking the rock-solid sock-disc and turning it over in his hands.

"More like 'weird'," Fishlegs commented. "Did you catch any trolls?"

"Nah," replied Ruffnut. "But we made up a new game to play with it. C'mon!" She turned and galloped away through the snow in the direction of a small frozen pond.

Tuffnut followed, calling over his shoulder, "It's awesome because it involves running around and hitting things with sticks."

"Eh, why not?" Snotlout shrugged before taking off after the twins. "Sounds like fun to me."

"Why does it always have to be 'hitting things' with those two?" sighed Fishlegs to himself.

A short run later, the four regrouped by the pond at the base of the hill. Its icy surface was white and smooth as polished glass: perfect for sliding.

Tuffnut took the disc from Snotlout and tossed it onto the pond where it glided smoothly all the way to the other end with amazing speed.

"Whoa, nice!" Snotlout laughed.

Fishlegs wasn't nearly as impressed. "That's your game? Sliding frozen socks across a pond?"

"Just wait," said Tuffnut, "it gets better. Ready, Ruff?"

"Yeah!" she cheered before launching herself out onto the pond, a curved stick now in her hands. She flew over the ice to the disc, and with a mighty whack of the stick, sent it zipping all the way back to land at the feet of the astonished Fishlegs and Snotlout.

The twins shared a high-five, crossed their arms and leaned into each other, snickering and looking smug.

"We call it 'Sockey'," they chorused.

"Hm," said Fishlegs. "For some reason, I'm not exactly sure that name's going to catch on. Maybe you should call it something else. Like maybe hock—"

"Who cares what it's called?!" shouted Snotlout, grinning from ear to ear. "That's awesome! Gimme another stick, I wanna play too!"

Fishlegs hesitated. "Wait, aren't there any rules?"

"Pfft!" Snotlout snorted, waving him off. "Rules schmules. All I know is you better watch out, 'cause I'm gonna send that sock thingy to the next island—HEY!"

In a blur of blond, the twins swooped in to snatch the disc just as he stooped to pick it up. And so the game began.

Fishlegs remained on the bank. "Uh, you guys have fun. I think I'll just…stay here and keep score."

No one was listening. Within seconds, the three teenaged Vikings raised enough chaos to wake all the souls in Valhalla. There would be bloodshed and probably a few missing teeth before the end. Fishlegs smiled a little, feeling relieved he'd chosen not to participate, and turned to leave them to it. After a step, he paused at the sight of an approaching newcomer and waved happily

"Astrid!"

Bundled to the ears, Astrid labored through the snow, red-faced and puffing with the effort.

"Hey, Fishlegs," she gasped. "Have…have you seen Hiccup today?"

"No. He's probably flying with Toothless. Why?"

"Hm. I'm not sure he'd be out flying with all this ice. I mean, Stormfly can barely get around…" she trailed off, looking past Fishlegs' thick frame at the ruckus going on behind him. "Oh great. Did the twins make Snotlout angry again?"

"Uh, yes…I-I mean no. I mean, maybe…? They invented a new game."

Astrid raised her eyebrows. "That's a _game_? Sounds more like a brawl to me."

"Well…yeah. Yeah, I'd say that's pretty accurate."

"Uh, guys?" Astrid marched to the edge of the pond. "Hey, guys! Could you stop for a second?"

The battle raged on…

"GUYS!"

Finally, an axe came hurling through the air and embedded itself in the ice right between Snotlout and Ruffnut, narrowly missing the toes of their boots.

"Hey!" Snotlout protested. "What was that for? I was just about to—"

"Ooh, nice shot," said Ruffnut, eyes glinting. "You should do that again! See if you can get it any closer to my foot."

"Yeah, she hasn't cut her toenails for a couple weeks," Tuffnut put in.

Astrid charged onto the ice, arms folded and jaw set. "Have any of you seen Hiccup today?" she asked, wrenching the axe out of the pond's surface.

"Uhhh, nope," said one twin.

"Haven't seen'im," said the other.

"Why d'you need him, anyway?" asked Snotlout.

"Well, I was going to ask him if—"

A shrill and startled cry from the crest of the hill ended the conversation right there. All eyes glanced upward to see something vaguely resembling a human shape plowing down through the snow toward them at alarming speed, yelping and squawking as it fell. Dumbfounded, they watched the unfortunate individual crash through the brambles on the bank of the pond and slide to a stop in a heap at their feet.

"Uuggh…" the human snowball moaned. "D-don't worry, I'll be fine…maybe."

Astrid was the first to react. She dropped to her knees beside the new arrival, brushing as much of the snow away as she could to reveal a head of auburn hair, a face full of freckles, a green shirt…

"Hiccup?!"

"Found'im," said Tuffnut, pointing.

"Um…" Hiccup sat up slowly and ruffled more snow from his furry jacket. "H-hey, everybody. I was just passing by and thought I'd…y'know, drop in and see what you're up to." He paused, teeth chattering, face flushing. "Wow, is it cold or what? Everybody keeping warm out here? Heh…"

"Hiccup," Astrid repeated, "What _was_ that? What happened?"

"I was…practicing."

"Practicing?"

"Walking. On the, uh…the ice. With the…with the leg. Yeah."

Astrid nodded in understanding and helped Hiccup to his feet, bringing one of his arms around her shoulders to steady him.

"You slipped?"

Hiccup's face reddened further, almost enough to cause his dusting of snow to melt into steam.

"Gee, how'd you ever guess?"

Astrid smiled, about to say something encouraging, but was interrupted as another avalanche on the side of the hill announced the arrival of Toothless. The dragon exploded out of the snow and leapt straight at group, scattering young Vikings in every direction and nearly bowling Hiccup over.

"Whoa, whoa, Toothless," said Hiccup, smiling and detaching himself from Astrid to throw his arms around his dragon's neck. "I'm ok. Lucky this nice, rock-hard pond was here to break my fall, huh?"

The Night Fury was not amused and uttered a concerned growl as he carefully eyed his human from head to toe.

"I'll be all right, bud. Really." Hiccup gave him a reassuring pat on the muzzle.

"Urgh, enough with the mush, already," moaned Snotlout. "Can we get back to Sockey now?"

Hiccup exchanged a humored glance with Astrid and bit back a snort. "'Sockey'?"

She shrugged. "Some new game the twins came up with, I guess."

"Yup," Ruffnut added, "it's gonna make us famous."

"Just wait, it'll be the rage throughout the Archipelago in a week or two," said Tuff.

"And all because our socks froze together in the storm."

Hiccup blinked at the disc. "Those…those are your socks?"

"No, no, they _used_ to be our socks," Tuffnut waggled a finger before gripping his Sockey stick. "_Used_ to be. Now, let me give you a demonstration."

"Tuffnut, wait!" Astrid lurched forward.

Tuffnut's stick whooshed through the air, catching the disc with a sharp crack. It shot into the air, but its journey ended too soon as it made contact with the forehead of the wholly unprepared Hiccup. the force of the blow sent him reeling a full 180 degrees before he dropped to the ice.


	2. Part 2

**Part 2**

Six pairs of eyes—five human, one dragon—gaped in shock at their friend sprawled on the ice in front of them. A nasty purplish lump was beginning to form above his right eye at frightening speed.

"Oops," said Tuffnut.

"AAAIIIEEEE!" Fishlegs squealed and grabbed at the tufts of yellow hair sticking out from under his helmet. "You killed Hiccup! Y-you _killed_ the chief's only son! Ohhhh, this is bad! This is very, very bad! What're we gonna do? What're we gonna tell Stoick?"

Tuffnut dropped the stick quickly, as if no longer having it in his hands would clear him of all guilt.

"Uh…does this mean I get to be chief when Stoick retires?"

"He's not dead!" Astrid rounded on him. "So no, yak-brain, you don't get to be chief!"

"That's a relief," Snotlout grunted under his breath.

"He was like five feet away from you!" Astrid advanced several steps, emphasizing each of the last few words with a punch in Tuffnut's shoulder. "What were you _thinking_?!"

"Yeah, yak-brain," Ruffnut contributed a moderate slug of her own just for fun. "What were you thinking?"

"Um, is this a trick question? Because I don't—OW!" Tuffnut's final punishment came as a swat from Toothless's tail and a deadly glance. "It was an accident! I'll tell'im to duck next time, ok?"

"There'd better not _be _a next time," Astrid huffed through gritted teeth, spinning around and kneeling alongside Toothless. "Somebody go find Gothi. And hurry!"

…

Crowding inside Hiccup's room, faces ashen with worry, the younger Vikings were quickly joined by the Chief, Gobber, and Gothi, the village elder. Without delay, the tiny old woman laid out a bowl, clean bandages, and an assortment of dried herbs on the bedside table, undoubtedly in order to whip up one of her poultices.

Dust from the rafters sprinkled down in tandem with the thump of an anxious dragon jumping around on the roof. Toothless had not been too keen on the idea of waiting outside while Gothi worked and was making his feelings very clear.

"Quie' up there, yaa great gallopin' beast!" bellowed Gobber, raising his hook hand to add emphasis. "Ya'll bring the entire house down on us at this rate. Hiccup'll be righ' again soon enough!"

The noise died to a scrabble of claws and low, worried rumblings.

The only one who didn't seem to notice the incredible din—or that anything was wrong at all—was Hiccup. Now awake and seated on the edge of his bed, he seemed to be having trouble focusing on any one thing in particular. His expression was confused if not a bit vacant, but oddly content as he hummed an off-key version of a local village tune.

Stoick crouched before his son, taking his face in his massive hands and examining him closely.

"Are you all right? Say something."

Hiccup winced. "Ow, ow, ow, owww."

"No, no, I mean can you tell me what happened?"

"I…I don't…" Hiccup leaned forward and squinted, eyebrows scrunched together as if noticing the Chief for the first time. "You look weird."

"I've been tellin'im tha' fer years," Gobber muttered, but retreated under the Stoick's sharp glance. "I mean…nice try, laddie, but no' even close."

Stoick released a heavy sigh and straightened to face the others at his full, intimidating height.

"I need to know what happened. Right now."

Sidestepping, Snotlout pointed at Tuffnut. "He did it."

Tuffnut blanched a bit as Stoick's hard gaze fell on him. "Uh, yes, so…I may or may not have unintentionally almost killed your son with a large amount of…socks. Wait…" he paused to think. "Yeah, yeah, I'm leaning more towards the 'may' on that one. But just to clear things up, the socks were in a state of complete frozen-ness at the time of the accident, sir."

"Uh," Ruffnut cut in, raising a finger, "there might've also been a rock somewhere inside said large amount of frozen socks. Or maybe two. I can't remember."

"Oh yeah," Tuffnut confirmed. "And that."

The other Vikings stared.

"What is wrong with you two?" blurted Snotlout.

"What? It was windy and we had to weigh them down somehow or they'd blow away before the trolls came to steal'em."

Gobber leaned in close to Stoick's ear. "He's go' a point, y'know. Trolls are tricky enough withou' the complication of losin' yer socks before ya even see one."

"Enough," Stoick groaned, rubbing his temples. Confused as he was about the whole situation, dealing with the twins was likely going to be more trouble than it was worth at the moment. "Time to leave. There's a lot of damage from the storm and we need everyone to help with the cleanup. Come on, all of you. Out."

Together with Gobber, Stoick herded Fishlegs, Snotlout and the twins down the stairs and out the front door. Astrid, however, lingered a moment to take a seat on the bed next to Hiccup. Lines of concern spread across her face as she watched Gothi smear the poultice across the lump on his forehead.

"Well, you've had a rough day," she said, trying to lighten the mood. "I'm glad you're all right."

"Y'know," Hiccup said after a semi-awkward pause, "you're pretty nice."

"Um, thank you?" Astrid was slightly taken aback by this compliment. It wasn't one he normally used around her. Something was off.

"Hiccup?" she said, waving a hand in front of his glazed eyes. "Are…are you gonna be ok?"

"Yeah, yeah, sure…" he trailed off, tilting his head as his eyes lowered to the ground. "I just…wish I could figure out what happened to my leg. I mean," he lifted the metal prosthetic up for her to see, "I'm not the only one seeing this, right? You see it too?"

Astrid's stomach flopped and she threw a perplexed look at Gothi, who was just as startled.

"Wait, y-you don't remember?"

"Mmmmmnope. Not ringing any bells. That's kind of why I asked."

Astrid stood, eyes growing wide. "Oh no…"

"Hey, on that note, you look familiar. Do I…do I know you?"

"STOIIICK!"

….

The Chief of Berk whipped around as Astrid came bursting from the house, slipping and sliding on the ice as she sped toward him looking panicked.

"Stoick!" she gasped, skidding to a stop as he held out an arm to steady her. "I mean, Chief Stoick, sir, there's something wrong with Hiccup!"

"Huh, ya think?" Snotlout snorted.

"No, I mean like, _really_ wrong."

Before she could continue, the door of the Haddock house flew open once again and out wobbled Hiccup trailing a length of bandages half-way wrapped around his head and a very disgruntled Gothi behind him.

"Hey, wait up, strange-girl-who-looks-really-familiar-but-I-can't-connect-a-name-with! I wasn't done asking questions!" He somehow made down the front steps and paused to stare at them all. "So…anybody wanna fill me in? Like who you all are and why everyone keeps calling me 'Hiccup'…that kind of stuff?"

Stoick's eyes widened and the bits of his face that could be seen under all the hair drained of color. He looked to Gobber, who was in a similar state of surprise, then back to Astrid.

"Is this some kind of prank?"

"Sir," she said, gravely serious, "you know Hiccup would never do anything like this as a joke."

Tuffnut raised a hand. "But I would."

"Not helping."

Stoick decided to ignore the side comments and took his son's shoulders, about to steer him back into the house, when out of nowhere came a large, snorting streak of black.

"AAAGH!" Hiccup yelped as Toothless plowed him into a thick snowdrift, where he happily began licking and slobbering all over the young Viking's face. "DDAAAA! What—GAACK! Get it off!"

It took the strength of Gobber, Stoick and all the teens to pull the Night Fury away and hold him back.

"Get him out of here!" the Chief commanded. Toothless protested loudly as the others began pushing him away and Stoick laid a hand on his muzzle, calming him momentarily. "Yes, dragon, I know. But I think it's best if you leave for now."

Toothless hung his head. Without any more resistance, he turned and trudged off through the snow, wings drooping.

Behind them, Hiccup pushed himself up, looking terrified and shaking from head to toe. "W-what _was_ that?" he whispered.

The others gaped at him in silent shock, which Gobber was the first to break.

"Laddie, that was Toothless."

"Tooth…Toothless?"

"Yes! Don't ya remember? He's yer dragon, yer _friend_, for the love of Thor's lightning!"

For a few seconds, the fog in Hiccup's eyes cleared and he blinked. "My friend…" he muttered, eyebrows knitting together as some forgotten piece of information worked its way back to the surface of his mind. But the glaze crept back too soon. "Pft! Why would anybody want to be friends with a dragon? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"Ahem," came Gothi's impatient noise from the top of the stairs. She wasn't too thrilled with the way her patient had so rudely bolted from the room before she could finish treatment.

Stoick bent and pulled his son to his feet. "C'mon, Hiccup. Let's get you back inside."

…

Once Hiccup was safely returned to his room with Gothi wrapping bandages around his head, a hushed and urgent discussion commenced between Gobber and Stoick down in the main room.

"Just giv'em some time, Stoick," Gobber admonished, watching his best friend pace the floor. "Needs his memory jogged a bit, that's all."

Stoick sighed. "Yes, I'm aware of this."

"These things don't last forever, ya'know. It'll come back to'im soon enough."

"How can you be sure? How do you know the future of Berk isn't resting in the hands of a boy who can't even remember his own name or…or the faces of those he loves?"

Gobber sighed. "I…I guess I don't, really. But I do know he's been through much, much worse than this and pulled through with hardly a scratch to call'is own."

Stoick stopped pacing long enough to raise an eyebrow.

"Well, I meant _besides_ that one time. Point is, the lad often proves himself stronger than we think. Why should this particular knock on the head be any different?"

The chief came to a standstill and was silent for several moments before his worried glance swiveled toward the stairs leading to Hiccup's room.

"Gobber, I want my son back."

…

Just outside the house, the younger Vikings huddled in a shivering bunch to hold a meeting of their own.

"Nice going, Tuff," Snotlout spat. "Now that Hiccup's out of commission, who's gonna run the Dragon Academy?"

"Ugh," Tuffnut grunted, "C'mon, guys, it was an accident, ok?"

"Yeah, a really stupid one," said Ruffnut.

"Yes, we know it was just an accident," Astrid interrupted. "Yes, I agree it was stupid, but it was still unintentional."

"Poor Hiccup," Fishlegs said mournfully. "And poor Toothless. I wish there was something we could do to help."

Astrid rubbed her chin "Maybe we can come up with something. Anyone got any ideas?"

"How 'bout another whack to the head?" Snotlout suggested. "That always helps me remember stuff."

There was a dull thud as Tuffnut brought his fist down hard on Snotlout's helmet while Ruffnut snickered.

"Ok, what's my name?"

Snotlout growled. "Your name's 'Dragon-Butt'!"

"Okaayyyy," Astrid forced her way between them before another brawl (or another game of Sockey, for that matter) could break out. "Does anybody have any _real_ ideas?"

"Hey, mine was real," Snotlout protested.

"We are _not_ hitting Hiccup on the head again."

"What about one of Gothi's healing potions?" Fishlegs piped up. "One time my dad got sick and Gothi made him drink one."

"Did he get better?" asked Ruffnut.

"Well…yeah, but only after three hours of non-stop barfing."

"Really?" the twins said together, exchanging impish grins. "Cool."

Astrid wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Yuck, no, not cool. Gross. Nobody should have to drink any of that weird stuff she makes."

"But what if we want to?"

"Ok," Snotlout barged in, "so hitting him on the head again and making him drink some of Gothi's death-juice are out. What's that leave, exactly?"

Astrid thought a moment, and then a smile twitched across her face as an idea formed. "We could always try reintroducing him to Toothless."

"Uh, hello," Ruffnut said, rolling her eyes. "You saw what happened just barely, right?"

"Yeah, but did any of you notice his eyes?"

Snotlout folded his arms. "I don't know about anybody else here, but I don't usually spend a whole lot of time gazing into Hiccup's eyes."

"No, no, listen! For a second it looked like he might actually have remembered Toothless before Stoick sent him away. I could see it in his face! If we could get the two alone together, like how they first bonded, it might come back to him."

"You could be right," Fishlegs said. "But how do we pull it off without Stoick sending Toothless away again?"

Astrid paused. She'd been so excited at the prospect of helping Hiccup regain his memory that she'd neglected to consider _how_ they would do it.

"Um…we'll come back to that, but first, let's go find Toothless."


	3. Part 3

**Part 3**

Toothless hadn't wandered far from the house. The young Vikings spotted him sulking at the top of the Great Hall's stone steps, which seemed to have taken the brunt of the storm. Sheets of ice concealed by massive drifts posed a particular problem here, just like the rest of the village. There were more than a few mishaps during the climb—mostly the fault of the twins, who couldn't stop poking each other—where the five of them nearly went sliding all the way back to the bottom, but they eventually made it safely to the top.

Toothless looked up expectantly as they approached, then, after realizing the group was minus his favorite person, dropped his head onto his crossed forelegs with a disappointed growl. Astrid had never seen a more dejected-looking creature and hurried up the last few steps to lay a hand on his snout.

"I'm sorry, Toothless," she said, ignoring the escalating tussle between the twins behind her. "I can't even imagine what this must be like for you. But we're going to fix it, ok?"

"Ow!" Snotlout yelped. "Knock it off, dorks! There're other people here too, y'know!"

"That wasn't me," Ruffnut protested, "that was totally Tuffnut!"

"C'mon, guys," Fishlegs tried to intervene. "Do we really have to—"

"Whatever," interrupted Snotlout, "but in my defense, you two look the same from behind."

"Uh, that's because we're twins, genius," Ruffnut growled.

"Yeah, but your butt's bigger than mine—OOF!" Tuffnut started, but his sister's fist caught him full in the stomach, sending him backwards into Snotlout.

"WAAGHH!"

Snotlout's feet went out from under him, making him the unfortunate recipient of a free trip down the stairs. A fast trip, but not exactly smooth and definitely not graceful. Toothless and the youngsters winced as he bounced off the last step and skidded to a stop face-down on the solid sheet of ice at the bottom.

"Wow," said Tuffnut after a moment. "We should try that sometime."

"Ha, yeah," Ruffnut agreed.

"I'm okaayyy," came Snotlout's muffled call.

Toothless huffed through his nostrils in irritation, then lowered his head and resumed staring off into the woods beyond.

Astrid was about to roll her eyes, but grinned instead. "Hm, the forest…" she mumbled. "And the ice… Guys, I think I have a plan. Don't move, Snotlout!"

"Um…right, ok, no problem. I'll just…I'll just stay here and chill for a while. Ahaha! Chill! Get it?"

"Ugh, why did Hiccup have to be the one to lose his memory?" Fishlegs muttered to no one in particular.

…

With some encouragement and a fair amount of badgering from Gobber, Stoick was finally convinced to leave his son under the care of Gothi and go back to heading the storm cleanup. The two of them had just exited the Haddock house and were about to make a right into the main part of the village when a breathless, red-faced Fishlegs came dashing up to them as fast as his little legs could take him through the ice and snow.

"Sir, wait! There's been another accident!"

Stoick sent Gobber a worried look. "Another…? Who? Where?"

"It's Snotlout!" Fishlegs gasped, hopping up and down in distress. "He slipped on the ice and fell down the stairs of the Great Hall!"

"Why does tha' no' surprise me?" Gobber mumbled.

Fishlegs turned and began rushing back the way he came. "Hurry! It doesn't look good!"

"Go get Gothi," Stoick ordered Gobber before following Fishlegs.

…

Silently, Astrid and Toothless waited behind the Haddock house until they were sure Gobber and Gothi were well on their way to the "accident" by the Great Hall. Then she turned to the dragon, barely able to contain her excited smile.

"Ok, Toothless," she said, taking his wide face in her hands so she could look him right in his big green eyes, "I need you to go wait in the woods. I'm going to bring Hiccup to you, but you have to be quiet or this won't work."

Seeming to understand, Toothless crooned and twitched his tail, eyes sliding from side to side on the lookout for anyone who might apprehend them.

"You'll need this." Astrid held out a large fish, which was instantly snatched and gobbled down whole.

The Night Fury gave a soft burble of thanks, and was on his way. Astrid watched him plow through the snow for a few seconds, then made her way around to the front door and slipped inside.

…

Stoick could hear the screaming long before they reached the sight of the alleged accident and it only increased once Snotlout saw that help was on the way.

"Oh the agony! Oh the paaaain!" he wailed, curled in on himself and rolling around on the ground as the twins looked on.

Partly concerned and partly annoyed, Stoick knelt beside him. "Can you tell me what hurts?"

"EVERYTHING! My head, my stomach, my thighs, my…elbow…"

The chief cast a suspicious glance in the direction of the twins.

Tuffnut backed up, shaking his hands out in front of him. "No way! It wasn't me, this time...well, not directly."

Gobber and Gothi came hurrying onto the scene. The village elder immediately crouched beside the howling Snotlout for a quick examination.

"AAAGH, don't touch me, I'm dying! Someone go get Hookfang. I want to see his beautiful, majestic face one last time before I go to Valhalla."

Ruffnut snorted. "Heh, are you sure you're going to Valhalla and not to—"

"Shut up! Of course I'm going to Valhalla! That's where all the greatest warriors go when they die."

"Can I have your dragon when you're dead?" Tuffnut chimed in.

"No! He's _my_ dragon and I need him to guard my funeral pyre—"

"Stop, all of you! Nobody's going to Valhalla today!" Stoick burst out, bringing silence down on the group like a blow of Thor's hammer. "Of all the impossible things I've had to deal with today…" he trailed off rubbing his forehead. "Gothi, can you help him?"

Gothi stood up, looking perplexed as she gave the chief a shake of her grey head and a shrug of her shoulders. Well, this was worrying.

"You…you can't?"

"I knew it!" Snotlout cried. "This is it! Farewell my loyal friends! Remember me as I was: brave and free and glorious."

"More like ridiculous," Fishlegs put in.

Gothi merely rolled her eyes and commenced scratching a series of runes and squiggly lines in the snow at their feet with her staff.

"What's she saying?" Stoick asked.

Gobber eyed the elder's drawings carefully through squinted eyes. "Hm. She says…he's lying. Huh, well no surprise there."

Snotlout looked up at Fishlegs and the twins, not sure what to do. Regardless of the extensive theatrics, the ruse had been discovered much sooner than anyone had anticipated. Astrid needed more time.

Fishlegs jumped in with a hasty suggestion. "Uhhh, maybe you should check him again, Gothi. You might've missed something."

Snotlout looked at him blankly and it was only after a sharp kick in the behind from each of the twins that he got the hint.

"OWW! I mean OHHH! I'm in some major pain! Yes, I think I need to be checked again…maybe like three more times because…because my insides feel like they were torn into pieces and then those pieces were set on fire and—"

"Get up, laddie!" Gobber cut in, reaching down hauling him upright by the front of his tunic. "There's nothin' wrong with ya, now stop screaming."

Gothi thought a moment, then added a few more runes to her patch of snow. Judging from the wicked grin making its way across Gobber's face, it couldn't be good.

"Ah-ha-_haaa_!" he snickered. "Not to worry, lad. She says one of'er potions should fix ya right up."

"Praise Odin, it's a miracle!" Snotlout shouted after a stunned moment of silence, raising his hands above his head. "I'm well again! Look, I'm standing up and I've never felt better!"

Fishlegs rolled his eyes. "So much for that plan."

…

"Hiccup?" Astrid called softly once she was through the door. "Hello?"

"Up here."

As expected, the reply came from Hiccup's room, so Astrid quickly climbed the stairs.

At the top, she found him with his head now wrapped in bandages, sitting cross-legged on his bed and holding a piece of paper and a charcoal pencil. Astrid watched him for a moment as he scribbled something down, then rubbed it out with the heel of his hand in frustration.

She came a little closer to find a smudged sketch of a dragon occupying the page. _Hiccup's_ dragon. Toothless. It was unusually sloppy and disproportionate for one of Hiccup's drawings, but unmistakable nonetheless.

"What're you doing?"

"I don't know." Hiccup sighed, throwing the paper into the air and watching it float to the floor. "I can't stop thinking about that dragon and it's really bothering me. I recognize him from somewhere, especially those eyes, but…everything's so blurry and weird right now. I just can't think straight."

Now was her chance. "Listen, you said you had more questions to ask me…"

Hiccup's eyes flicked up at her. "Is that why you came back?"

"Yes. I need you to come with me." She extended a hand, but he didn't move.

"Hey, uh…look, I'd love to, but I don't really know you…"

"Please, Hiccup, you have to trust me. I'll explain everything to you. The dragon, your leg, who you are, everything."

Finally, the prospect of getting some answers was too much and Hiccup took her hand, allowing her to pull him upright. Astrid wasted no time in tugging him along down the stairs and out the door.

"So, where're you taking me…exactly?" Hiccup asked once they were outside.

Astrid smiled. "To the woods."


	4. Part 4

Part 4

Taking note of the seriously strong grip the girl had on him, Hiccup soon realized she wasn't letting go any time soon.

"Wouldn't it have been easier…a-and _warmer_ to stay in the house and talk?" he huffed as they scrambled over a snow-covered boulder. "I mean, not that I don't enjoy a nice, brisk run through dangerously freezing temperatures, I just don't see why you had to drag me out here."

"Like I said," the girl replied over a shoulder, "you have to trust me."

Hiccup was beginning to think that decision was probably not the best, however, at the moment he had no choice. It was either stay in that room in a forgetful haze or follow her and maybe get an answer or two, even if it meant frost-bitten extremities.

"Hey, uh…"

"What now?"

"Are we there yet?

"Really?"

"Yeah, well it's kinda cold and I would prefer to keep the rest of my body…parts…intact..." His words faded out as the girl slowed to a standstill and dropped his hand. A strange, paralyzing fear welled up in his throat at the sight before them, choking off his breath. They were not alone here in this clearing. The dragon, the one that had jumped on him back in the village, the one who'd been the subject of his sketches earlier, was standing a mere fifteen feet away.

With a soft growl, the beast lifted its head, tilting it to the side, eyes large and fiercely green.

"Hiccup," prompted the girl, "it's ok. He won't hurt you."

"W-what happened to answering my questions?"

The dragon took a cautious step forward, causing Hiccup to take a giant leap backwards. "Uummm, ok, I think that's enough Q and A for now, gotta run!"

The girl snagged him by an arm just as he whirled around to make a beeline for the safety of the village.

"Wait! You can't go!"

"Aaaand why not?" Hiccup tried in vain to wriggle out of her grasp.

"Listen to me! This is _your _dragon and his name is 'Toothless'."

Hiccup thought for a minute. "Yeah, that other guy already told me that and I've got nothing. Let go!"

"No! I'm telling you, this dragon is your friend! Try to remember, Hiccup. You found him here in the woods and you helped him learn to fly again. You _trained_ him."

"_T-trained_ him? What is it with you people and training dragons? That's the stupidest thing I've ever—would you stop with the arm-tugging thing already—OW!"

Hiccup found himself suddenly jerked around to face the dragon, who, incidentally, had been inching closer and closer for the duration of the argument. There was a minor tussle as Hiccup attempted to resist the girl's shoving and stay as far away from the animal as possible.

"Are you crazy?! That thing probably wants to eat me!"

"Oh for the love…he doesn't want to eat you," she grunted, finally managing to force him forward a bit. She was surprisingly strong and solid for her size, and despite his best efforts, Hiccup couldn't throw her off balance enough to escape. "Toothless is your friend. You said yourself he seemed familiar. Now stop struggling and take a _look_ at him!"

"No!" Hiccup shouted after a moment, startling the girl. Taking advantage of the opportunity, he finally twisted free and shoved her aside. "No, you're all crazy! Especially you, whoever you are! I'm outta here!"

The confused teen bolted for the very heart of the woods, unaware of the stealthy streak of black trailing immediately behind him.

Astrid charged after them both. "Hiccup, wait!"

….

Somehow, Hiccup knew where he was going. However, his steps, though automatic, were made unsteady by snow and brambles. It was almost as if he'd been here before, sometime long ago in a distant shred of memory… No, that was entirely impossible. He'd never seen this place before in his life and, frankly, he wasn't sure he ever wanted to see it again. But where else could he go?

His head throbbed, throat aching with every frozen breath and wild panic surged into his muscles, spurring him onward. It wasn't the most comfortable feeling, but it was keeping him moving. That was all that mattered.

Caught up in hazy fear, Hiccup didn't realize until too late that the ground in front of him was running short. His next step was nothing but air, turning his escape efforts into a fast and painful tumble down a steep, rock-covered slope.

At last, the boy slid to a stop, sprawling flat on his back at what he hoped was the very bottom, the forest and sky above him whirling into a nauseating smear of white, green and grey.

_Keep going, stupid! Get up and keep running!_

No matter how much he wanted to flee, every battered, frozen part of him protested, stilled by the breathless shock of an abrupt landing and the eerie familiarity of the place. He was stuck, doomed by his own fatigue to lie here until another storm buried him or those strange people took him back to their village…

_Snap!_

…Or that.

Even without being able to see straight, he knew it was the black dragon. He could hear the soft crush of snow beneath its feet as it crept toward him. Seizing the tiniest spark of adrenaline, the young Viking managed to roll sideways and push himself up, scrambling away until his back bumped against a boulder. The creature advanced, quickly, silently and Hiccup cringed as jets of hot, fishy breath bombarded him from a wide mouth inching closer to his face.

Cornered. He was going to die here, eaten by a dragon and never knowing his real name, how he got here or why he was missing a good chunk of his left leg.

_No…please no, don't let it end this way…_

He expected fangs to sink into his neck at any moment, but heard a horrible retching noise coming from deep inside the dragon's throat. What in the…?

Oh. Oh, no, no, no. This couldn't be happening. The animal, now apparently having no intention of eating him, was about to barf on him instead. With a heave, up came one half of a very dead, very slimy fish, which was immediately deposited into Hiccup's lap. It was by far better than being devoured, but horrifying nonetheless.

"Uh…thanks. Just what I always wanted." Fighting a shudder, Hiccup watched warily as the dragon back away and sit on its haunches, head once again tilting to the side with eyes wide and expectant, almost innocent. When it received no further response from him, it smacked its lips and crooned softly, eyes darting down to the fish, then up at Hiccup again.

"You…you want me to…_eat_ it?"

More lip smacking and what may have been a dragonish grin.

"Ugh…y'know, I think I'll pass…" The boy trailed off as once again, the black animal tiptoed toward him. Instinctively, Hiccup raised a hand as if in vain hopes of stopping the thing dead in its tracks.

He squeezed his eyes shut, turning his head away, certain the dragon couldn't possibly resist taking a bite out of him this time…

And then he felt it. The broad, scaly snout meeting his outstretched palm, warm and solid, a perfect fit…_familiar_…

One eye slid open, then the other, both immediately captured by the fierce green pair opposite him. They seized his gaze and held it fast. Not once did they blink and the young Viking went rigid, hypnotized by the sudden rush of disjointed memories.

_A new tailfin…dragon nip…wind under wings…_

"I…" Hiccup mumbled, "I know you…"

_Drawings in the dirt…fish…no teeth…a secret cove…_

"T-Tooth…Toothless?" Hiccup's eyes grew round and clear, a smile pulling up one side of his mouth. Then he threw his arms around the dragon's neck. "Hey, bud!"

With a happy howl, Toothless knocked him back, slobbering and snorting.

"Easy bud! Watch the head."

Hiccup?" The blonde girl had arrived. "Are you ok?"

"Astrid!" he blurted her name just for the sake of hearing it from his own mouth. "I'm ok, I think."

She sighed with relief, pushing the dragon aside to help Hiccup stand. Then she punched him in the arm.

"Aaagh, seriously? Why do you always have to—"

"Don't ever do that again, ok?" Astrid said, then her face softened and she wrapped him up in a tight hug. "I knew you'd remember," she said into his ear. "I knew it! Hiccup, I'm so glad you're all right."

"What's going on here?" a voice boomed from the rim of the cove.

The two separated hastily, faces reddening a little as Stoick, Gobber and the other teens came into view.

"Ooh," sang Tuffnut as Snotlout and Ruffnut snickered beside him. "Looky-looky. Love in the wilderness."

"Shut up, Tuffnut," growled Astrid.

"Sorry," Fishlegs called. "We stalled as long as we could! Honest!"

"_What_ is the meaning of all this?" Stoick demanded again.

"Sir, I can explain…" Astrid started.

Stoick separated himself from the group, bearing down on the two young Vikings in question. "Hiccup should be at home resting! And I thought I said to keep that dragon away—"

"Dad," Hiccup said, coming forward, "everything's ok."

The burly chief stopped in his tracks, blinking at his son for a moment before a single tear travelled down his face. All at once, the man came careening down the slope like a red-haired avalanche, landing solidly in front of his son.

"What…what did you just say?"

Hiccup smiled. "I said everything's ok, dad. Astrid was only trying to—HGGHCK!"

"It's you!" The rest of Hiccup's sentence was lost as his father threw his arms around him, engulfing him in a crushing embrace. "It's really you. You've come back to me."

"Aww," someone cooed from above.

"Gaaah," the teen coughed as he was released. "Ow, ow, ow, ok, can we not do the whole 'crush Hiccup' thing and say we did?"

Grinning, Stoick stepped back, ruffling the hair sticking out of the bandages around his son's head.

"Anything you say, my boy…_my son_."


End file.
